Library Books and Wishing Wells
by CharmedRumbelle
Summary: Gold visits Belle at the Library the day after their dinner date and checks out an embarrassing library book, Belle catches Gold with his pants down, and a ride to the park gets Gold in trouble. Part 12 of my "Gone to the Dogs" series.


_Combining these three anonymous prompts: Gold goes to the library to see belle, but doesn't want to make it look like he's there to see her. So he picks up a book off the book cart and when he goes to check it out, it turns out the be the Kama sutra (idk how to spell it), belle looks at him weird (or she ends up liking his choice of reading)_

 _AND_

 _Belle walks in on gold changing_

 _AND_

 _Belle and Gold take the dogs out for a walk in the woods and come across the well_

 ** _Library Books and Wishing Wells_**

Gold entered the library the day after he and Belle's date at about one in the afternoon. He had been up half the night thinking about her, and thinking about what might have happened if he hadn't been such a coward. It had been far too many years since he felt the intimate touch of a woman, and he presumed long ago that he never would again. He never imagined that someone like Belle would come into his life, and the thought of it both excited and terrified him at the same time. He wanted to see her again, and hoped that in the process he would look neither pathetic or like a stalker.

He spotted Belle in an aisle of books doing some re-shelving, and he stood quietly and watched her for several minutes without her noticing. The moment she turned around, he grabbed a book off the shelf and started to walk away.

"Ronan? Is that you?" Belle called out in a whisper as she made her way over to him.

"Oh. Hey – I just – stopped in to get this book. I didn't see you, thought you might be on a break." Gold said.

"No, I was just shelving some books. So, what are you reading?" Belle asked, and she grabbed the book he was holding, looked at it, and then looked up at him in shock. "This is the book you want?"

"Yes." Gold said. "Came here just to get it."

"You're sure?" Belle asked.

"Positive." Gold replied, now realizing that he probably should have looked at the book before he began this conversation.

" _The Complete Kama Sutra._ Interesting choice. Can't wait to find out what you learn." Belle teased, and Gold immediately turned red. "I can check you out if you'd like."

"What?" Gold asked.

"The book. You said you wanted to check it out. I can do that for you. Then again, after you read this book I can probably do lots of things for you. Or vice versa." Still holding the book, Belle flitted over to the checkout counter and Gold followed, still flush with embarrassment. "Can I see your library card?"

"My what?"

"Your library card. I need it if you want to check out this book." Belle said.

"I, um – I think I -" Gold stammered.

"You don't have a library card, do you Ronan?" Belle asked.

"No." Gold replied.

"Well, do you want one? They're free." Belle said.

"Alright." Gold said. Belle typed a few things into the computer, then looked up at him.

"What's your birthday?" Belle asked.

"My what?"

"Your birthday, everybody has one, Ronan. I know your age so if you just tell me the date I can figure the year out on my own." Belle said.

"April fourteenth." Gold replied.

"Ronan, we were already seeing one another when you had a birthday, why didn't you say anything? Honestly." Belle said, and she finished typing. "There. Just takes a minute to print it out. By the way – mine is December twenty-seventh, and I do not appreciate a Christmas/Birthday combo gift. Gaston tried it with me and it was one of the long list of reasons why I ended things with him." Belled walked over to the printer and took out the library card. "Here we are." Belle used the card to check out the book, then handed the book and the card to Gold. "Its due in three weeks, but you can always renew unless there's a waiting list." Gold looked down at the book, then looked up at Belle.

"I just wanted to see you." Gold admitted.

"I know." Belle said.

"So all of this -"

"I just thought I'd have a little fun with you Ronan, that's all. You do have a sense of humor, I presume?" Gold looked up at her and couldn't help but laugh a bit. "So – do you want the book or not?"

"Not particularly." Gold said.

"That's fine." Belle said. "I think I'll take it home – I've heard there are some interesting things in here. Can't wait to try them out. We'll just have to make sure that Stewart has his scheduled potty break before we get started next time."

"I will take the library card, though. Probably should have gotten one years ago." Gold said.

"Yes, you should have. Shame on you." Belle agreed. "So – doing anything tonight?"

"Well, the days are getting longer – I do enjoy taking Stewart on a nice evening walk on days like this. Perhaps you and Sophie would like to join us." Gold suggested.

"I think we would. I'm off at five today." Belle said. "How about we meet at your shop around six thirty and go from there?"

"I'd like that." Gold said.

"Ronan, next time you want to come over and see me, just ask for me, I like seeing you. No need for you to lurk around."

"Okay." Gold said. "You're not really going to take that book home, are you?"

"No. I already know plenty." Belle said flirtatiously, and Gold blushed once again. "Oh, and Ronan – can you not wear the suit on our walk tonight? It's kind of impractical for dog walking. Also in case we decide to – you know – have some coffee afterward? Undoing that tie is a real pain."

"I'll see what I can do." Gold said, and he smiled at her as he left the building.

* * *

Belle entered Gold's shop a bit before six thirty. She left Sophie tethered to a pole outside the store, afraid that the large dog would be a bull in a china shop while in the store. Stewart came running out from the back room and happily greeted Belle. "Hey, Stewart! Where's your papa?" Belle asked. She picked up the little dog and he wiggled happily and gave her kisses. "Oh, you're so sweet. Is Ronan in the back?" Belle made her way toward the back room. "Ronan, are you -" Belle began, then gasped when she entered the back room. Gold was sitting on a lounging sofa in the back room wearing nothing but his underwear. His suit was stacked in a pile on one side of him, and a pair of jeans and a black shirt were on the other side. He had his back turned and was picking up the shirt when Belle entered.

"Well, that answers that question." Belle said, giggling a bit. Gold gasped in embarrassment.

"What are you doing here!" he shouted.

"I thought we were meeting here." Belle said.

"Not in my back room!" Gold shouted, and he looked down at Stewart. "Why didn't you bark?"

"Want some help?" Belle teased.

"Just wait outside. Please." Gold growled at her, very embarrassed.

"It's not like I won't see it someday. I hope." Belle complained under her breath as she walked out of the room and back into the main area of the store. Several minutes later, Gold came back into the main store area with Stewart following him. Belle eyed him up and down. "Very nice." She stated. "I liked the other look better, though."

"You're the one who told me not to wear a suit." Gold said.

"I didn't mean the suit, I meant – well, you know." Belle said playfully. Gold blushed in embarrassment. "Are you ready?"

"Where's Sophie?" Gold asked. Stewart barked at the mention of her name.

"She's outside, I didn't think it would be a good idea to bring her in the store, I was afraid she'd break something." Belle said.

"Well, that's nothing you haven't done." Gold said.

"Are we riding together then?" Belle asked.

"I suppose we are. I have to have the car detailed this week anyway, Sophie can go in the back with Stewart." Gold said. "Come on Stewart, you ready?" The little dog barked with excitement as Gold reached for the leash on the counter and latched it onto Stewart's collar. When they got out the door, Sophie, who was waiting patiently, greeted Stewart with excitement, and they all made their way into Gold's car. They drove for several minutes before Belle finally spoke up.

"Sorry about walking in on you." Belle said, but Gold didn't say a word in reply. "At least I did get one question answered though."

"What question?" Gold asked.

"Boxer or briefs." she replied, and Gold flushed in embarrassment once again. "Ronan, honestly, what's the big deal? So I saw you in your underwear. We're DATING. You can see me in mine if you like." Gold suddenly pulled the car over onto the side of the road and stopped, putting the car into park. "What's wrong?" Belle asked, and Gold grabbed her and kissed her hard on the lips.

"Been wanting to do that all day." Belle smiled at him.

"Well, I'm glad you did." Belle said, and she kissed him back. They sat in the car for several minutes, kissing and playing with one another's hair as they held each other. The car was in park but still running, and suddenly Sophie let out a loud bark.

"We'll get to the park in a minute. We're busy." Gold grumbled as he stopped kissing Belle momentarily to scold Sophie, then went back to kissing her. Sophie continued barking loudly, and then Stewart joined her in the noise. Sophie leaned on the arm of the window, touching the button that opened the window with her paw, and the window rolled down all the way. Sophie immediately jumped out of the car, and Stewart watched her, barking furiously. Belle pulled away from Gold to see what the commotion was about, then squealed in fear as she saw Sophie chasing a squirrel into the woods nearby.

"Sophie!" Belle screamed. Gold immediately reached for the window control and closed the back window and then turned off the ignition as Belle got out of the car. "I have to go after her." Belle said, nearly in tears.

"Of course." Gold said. "I'm sorry, I – I can't help you. I can't run."

"I'm going to take Stewart, she's more likely to come back if we're both out there." Belle said, and she grabbed Stewart's leash and put it on him, then picked up Sophie's leash and ran off with Stewart in tow. Gold got out of the car and buttoned up his top two buttons which Belle had undone during their make-out session. He leaned on his cane and looked down at his ankle, a look of both anger and frustration coming across his face. Belle needed his help, and he could do nothing for her but wait. He wanted to pick up his cane and swing it in anger at something – anything – but the only thing nearby was his Cadillac and that would do nothing but put a dent in his very expensive car, so he simply leaned against the car and stewed in anger.

"Ronan! Ronan come here!" he heard Belle shout after about five minutes of waiting.

"Belle! Where are you? Are you alright?" Gold called out in reply as he moved toward the woods, following the small dirt trail.

"Yes, just come here, you have to see this!" Belle called out. Gold followed her voice, carefully making his way down the path, which grew wider and easier to walk on the further he went. The path became a bit steeper as it moved uphill, and he could see Belle standing in front of him with both dogs, gripping both of their leashes tightly. She was standing in front of what appeared to be a well of some kind, made out of stone.

"I see you retrieved the escape artist." Gold said.

"She hadn't gone far. Had the poor squirrel up in a tree just over there." Belle said, looking over to the side. "Isn't it beautiful?"

"What?" Gold asked.

"The well. Where did it come from?" Belle asked.

"I'm assuming someone built it there." Gold said, and Belle rolled her eyes at him.

"I know that, just – why here? In the middle of the woods?" Belle asked.

"I have no idea sweetheart – and I'm being eaten by mosquitos so how about we go back to the car." Gold said.

"Ronan, look at it. It doesn't even look like a well to retrieve water. I wonder how far down it goes." Belle said, and she bent over and peered inside the well. Gold immediately grabbed her and pulled her away.

"Would you not do that? As clumsy as you are, you'll fall in." Gold chided her, his arms still wrapped around her.

"I was only clumsy once around you." Belle said.

"Well, I don't want to chance there being a second time." Gold said, and he kissed her on the lips. "Come on let's go before your giant friend spots a deer and drags you off to chase it."

"Alright." Belle whispered, and she looked at the well once more. "It is beautiful though. Don't you think? Something very – romantic about it. I'd like to come back here sometime. Just us – alone."

"For what?" Gold asked.

"Whatever." Belle replied playfully. Gold stared at her in disbelief.

"HERE?" he asked. "In the middle of the woods?"

"Well, I'd bring a blanket." Belle said, and she giggled a bit. Gold just shook his head and turned to walk away. Belle followed behind with the dogs. When they got back to the car, Graham was placing something on the windshield, his police car pulled over with its lights flashing.

"What the hell are you doing?" Gold asked.

"You can't park here. I'm giving you a ticket." Graham said.

"I wasn't parking here." Gold growled at him.

"Car was stopped. No hazard lights on. No one around. Looks parked to me." Graham replied. Gold grabbed the ticket off the windshield and looked at it.

"I'm not paying this." Gold said.

"Well, that's up to you. However, your car will likely be impounded if it's not paid within thirty days." Graham said.

"You lay so much as one finger on my Cadillac and I'll cut your hand off." Gold snarled at him, pointing his cane toward the police officer.

"Did you just threaten me? I could arrest you for that, you know." Graham stated in reply.

"Graham, please, it was my fault – Sophie got out of the car and I to chase after her, we never would have left the car here otherwise. Can't you just overlook it this once?" Belle pleaded. Graham thought about it for a moment.

"Well, I suppose I could do that. Just this once." Graham said. "By the way – I was wondering when you were going to the dog park again. Riley likes Sophie quite a bit and – I was hoping we could have another play date."

"ANOTHER play date?" Gold asked, looking at Belle.

"We've met a few times at the dog park, it's not a big deal. How is tomorrow for you?" Belle asked.

"Actually, Belle, I thought I'd have you over for dinner tomorrow." Gold said.

"Really? Oh, well I guess tomorrow isn't good then. And I work late on Thursday so that's not good." Belle said. "Friday then?"

"Bae will be in town on Friday – I thought we'd do something together." Gold said.

"Oh, okay – I'm sorry Graham – I'll get back to you, we'll set something up." Belle said.

"Right." Graham said. "Well, let me know then."

"Okay. Thank you, Graham." Belle said. Gold just sneered at the man, and Graham got into his police car and drove off. "You could have at least thanked him." she said to Gold as they got back into his car.

"For what? Giving me a ticket and trying to arrange a date with my girlfriend right in front of me?" Gold asked.

"It was a play date for our DOGS. Not a DATE date." Belle said.

"Well, I don't like that either. Sophie is with Stewart, I don't think he'd like her going off and romping with another man." Gold said.

"I don't think that Stewart cares." Belle said, laughing at him. "Ronan – I'm not interested in Graham, alright? I promise." Gold looked over at Belle.

"We still haven't had our walk." Gold said.

"No we haven't." Belle said. "It's getting late though, and I haven't had dinner. How about we just skip the walk for today and go to Granny's and have dinner on the patio?"

"I suppose we can do that." Gold said. "Dinner date three nights in a row? You sure you won't get tired of me?"

"Never." Belle said. "Were you really planning to ask me over for dinner tomorrow or did you just come up with that for Graham's benefit?"

"Before we started seeing one another - would you have gone on a date with Graham if he had asked you?" Gold asked.

"That's not an answer to my question." Belle said.

"And that's not an answer to mine." Gold retorted. Belle sighed.

"I wonder if that well is a wishing well. Because I think I need to go back there and make a wish." Belle said.

"A wish for what?" Gold asked.

"For my boyfriend not to be such a jealous git." Belle said. Stewart suddenly let out a single bark. "See? Stewart agrees with me."

"No one asked you, Stewart. You worry about your own girlfriend." Gold said. Belle just shook her head and sighed, then gave Gold a quick kiss on the cheek.

"Let's go before you get a ticket for loitering on the side of the road." Belle said, and she rested her head on Gold's shoulder as he started the car and drove off.


End file.
